


Aleinn um Jólin

by IAmNotOneOfThem



Category: LazyTown
Genre: Christmas, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-18
Updated: 2016-12-18
Packaged: 2018-09-09 14:14:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,192
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8893831
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IAmNotOneOfThem/pseuds/IAmNotOneOfThem
Summary: inspired by the song "Aleinn um Jólin" from "Jól í Latabæ".

It's Christmas and both Sportacus and Robbie are alone... but not for much longer.





	

The streets were quiet, almost abandoned, no footprints in the fresh snow except for Sportacus’ own.

There were no noises except for the crunch of his feet as he walked and the sound of celebration coming from the town hall.

Sportacus smiled and rubbed his arms, letting his gaze wander through the darkness around him, broken only by the street lamps whose light made the snow glitter and shine. The hero turned around to look back at the path he had taken and wondered, not for the first time, why he was out here in the first place.

Inside the town hall, the children, Mayor and Ms. Busybody were celebrating. Everyone had come together to exchange presents, eat, laugh and sing.

Well, everyone but Robbie.

Sportacus turned back around and continued on his way. He had stepped out for a moment, not to fetch Robbie, like Stephanie had assumed, but for some quiet.

As ridiculous as it sounded, he felt… lonely.

The citizens of Lazytown were his friends, his family, but still, their laughter and cheerfulness couldn’t fill the empty hole in his chest whose width and extent he hadn’t quite realised until now. No matter how much he loved them, it wasn’t enough.

Sportacus winced.

Saying it like felt wrong, but he couldn’t think of any other words to describe what he going on inside his heart.

It wasn’t their fault, but his; their love and friendliness should have filled him, but it didn’t.

Closing his eyes against the light of the moon, Sportacus sighed.

He didn’t even know what it was that he was missing, why there was _loneliness_ in his heart. He only knew that there was something he wanted, something neither the children nor Ms. Busybody or the Mayor could give him.

Maybe, he mused as he buried his fingers in the pockets of his pullover, a gift from the kids after they caught him jogging with short sleeves, he felt so lonely because there was a wall separating them, and it was him who put it there.

He’s always kept people away at an arm’s length because he didn’t, couldn’t, trust them with his secret. Everything would be different if they knew what he was. But this way, he had to hide a large and important part of himself. Not to mention he’d see them all die, one day…

A sudden noise pulled Sportacus from his thoughts.

His eyes snapped open.

When he couldn’t find what caused the sound immediately, he began looking around, peering into the darkness. There, Sportacus thought, something was moving. He narrowed his eyes.

If it wasn’t for his white cuffs and his pale complexion, Sportacus might not have seen Robbie silently sneak through the night. The villain was wearing the same clothes as usually, his suit and vest with the dark blue shirt, his hair…

Sportacus stopped himself in his appreciation for Robbie’s physique when he realised he was wearing _the exact same clothes as usually_.

No hat, no gloves, no scarf; nothing that would keep him warm. Even from where Sportacus was standing, he could see Robbie shiver.

Sportacus’ crystal, hidden under his sweater, gently vibrated against his chest as to not alert Robbie to Sportacus’ presence. He reached down to brush a finger over it in a silent thanks, then made his way over to the other man.

He tried to be as noisy as possible, taking loud steps so Robbie wouldn’t be taken by surprise, but Robbie showed no signs of having noticed him. As Sportacus came closer, he noticed, with widening eyes, that Robbie was crying.

It wasn’t the loud wailing and sobbing of a child who was hurt or sorry, nor the kind of crying adults did when everything became too much. It was the crying of a man who has cried so often there wasn’t any sound left.

The sight made Sportacus want to pull Robbie into a hug, but he, barely, refrained from it. Instead he cleared his throat loudly once he stepped into Robbie’s line of sight.

Robbie jumped in surprise. Sportacus automatically reached out when he began to lose his footing on the snow, slipping and sliding and nearly falling down. The moment Robbie stood secure on his feet, he shook Sportacus’ arm off with a scowl.

Sportacus just smiled. “Hello Robbie, what are you doing out here?”

“Asks the person who is outside as well.”

“I saw you all alone without proper winter clothing. You could catch a cold or worse.”

Robbie glared. “I’m not freezing.” Sportacus looked from Robbie’s shaking arms to his red nose and raised an eyebrow. The villain scowled harder. “Why don’t you go back to celebrating with the brats and leave me alone?”

Sportacus shuffled from one foot to the other and avoided Robbie’s eyes. “I can’t leave you out here when you could get really sick, Robbie.”

“Yes, you can. You just turn around and flip the flop back to the town hall.” Robbie waved his hand. “Shoo.”

The hero released a long breath and watched it rise to the sky as a small cloud. “Robbie,” he sighed. Sometimes, dealing with Lazytown’s resident villain was like pulling teeth. “Why are you out here anyway?”

“I don’t see how that is any of your business.”

“Robbie.”

Robbie scoffed. “I went for a walk.”

“In the cold.”

“Yes.”

“While it is snowing.”

“Yes?”

“In the middle of the night.”

“…yes.”

Sportacus sighed. “Robbie…” Looking back to the lights and warmth of the town hall, an idea crossed Sportacus’ mind. He turned his head to face Robbie and smiled. If possible, the villain looked even more annoyed, like he was dreading his own continued existence and wondered if it would ever end. “Why don’t you come with me? I’m sure the kids would love to have you there and it’s warm inside.”

Robbie snorted. “Sure, they’d love to have me there. That’s why I am the _only person who wasn’t invited_.”

The words cut through the silence, colder than their surroundings could ever be. Sportacus winced. Seeing the pity in Sportacus’ eyes, Robbie realised just exactly what that had sounded like. “It’s not like I actually _care_ about being invited. I would have said ‘no’ anyway. There’s no way I’d subject myself to _that_.”

“There’s probably a good reason for why you weren’t invited” Sportacus tried. “I’m sure they just… didn’t know where to deliver the invitation!” Robbie gave him a look that said ‘ _I wonder how you can even stand with an IQ as little as yours._ ’ Sportacus pulled a face. “They’re all having fun. We’ve exchanged the presents already, but there’s still some food left for you to eat, if you’re hungry. When I went outside they were telling stories, something you are probably very good at, so you could just join-“

“If it’s so much fun, why are you outside?”

There it was.

Sportacus’ head whipped around so he could stare at the villain, a feeling of embarrassment creeping up his back and to his ears, making them turn pink under his hat. If Robbie noticed he had hit the jackpot, he didn’t mention it-

“Unless, of course, it’s not as much fun as you make it be.”

So much for that.

Sportacus pinched his nose and huffed out some air. Leave it to Robbie to find out where exactly a person was hurting and press his fingers into the wound. He rubbed his arms to banish the cold, though he knew it wasn’t the weather that made him shiver, but the cold within. “My crystal was beeping.”

That wasn’t exactly a lie, as his crystal had really started beeping, but only _after_ Sportacus had seen Robbie outside all by himself. However, the villain didn’t need to know that, did he?

“Is it malfunctioning?” Robbie sneered. “I can’t see anyone being in trouble.”

Something about the way Robbie said it made Sportacus pause and look at him more closely. He had forgot about the tears, as, it seemed, had Robbie, but they were there, watery lines that reflected the soft moonlight, making them look all the brighter and more visible. Robbie’s eyes were reddened. Even in the darkness, Sportacus saw so much sadness in them, so much suffering, it made his heart contract painfully in his chest.

“I think _you_ are, Robbie.” The words were out of his mouth before Sportacus could stop them. He almost regret them when new tears rushed into Robbie’s eyes and took a step forward, arm half-raised, to reach out to the taller man and comfort him.

Robbie pushed his hand away and bared his teeth. Sportacus froze mid-motion. “I’m not,” the villain hissed. “Why would I be? Because I’m not in there with the brats doing noisy things and acting all festive?! I could care less about your little celebration, Sportaflop! I couldn’t care less that I’m all by myself while you are inside of there, you and the brats, and I don’t give a fuck-“ Sportacus winced. “-about not having been invited! I don’t care that no one sees me unless I’m literally running around in costumes trying to ruin their day, and I don’t need your pity!! I don’t need you to act all high and mighty and invite me inside so you can feel better, because look, _we’ve invited the villain and we’re acting like we like him! But only for today because we can’t stand seeing him for any longer! I DON’T CARE, SPORTACUS, I DON’T CARE! I’D RATHER BE ALONE! I WANT TO BE IN PEACE AND QUIET! I DON’T-“_

Robbie had come closer while shouting, gesticulating widely with tears streaming down his face. Close enough for Sportacus to reach out and take hold of his vest. Close enough for Sportacus to place his hand to the back of Robbie’s head and gently guide it to rest on Sportacus’ shoulder, before he let it slip down, rubbing patterns into his back.

Robbie went deadly quiet, as rigid and frozen as a statue.

Sportacus resolve faltered. He’d acted without thinking, had reacted to Robbie’s distress and his tears, had done what he would have done had Robbie been one of the children. But Robbie wasn’t. On the contrary, Robbie hated being touched. Sportacus’ grip weakened and he considered drawing away again to apologise, but then he heard a sob and his heart melted.

Robbie all but clung to Sportacus as he cried and the elf held him, making soothing noises, rubbing his back, running his fingers through the barely-gelled hair. “It’s alright,” he murmured, trying to breathe through the pain of his constricting heart, “it’s alright, Robbie. I’m here for you.”

He didn’t know how long they were standing there, Robbie crying and Sportacus holding him, but the elf didn’t really care. Only when his feet started getting cold and the trembles of Robbie’s body turned into shivers did Sportacus pull away. He smiled a warm, calming smile and squeezed Robbie’s arms before he let go. “You’re not alone, Robbie. I’m here for you.”

Robbie wiped his face with the back of his hands, the gesture so child-like it made Sportacus’ smile widen. When he lowered his hands again, Robbie’s scowl was back. “I don’t need your pity, Sportadork.”

Sportacus shook his head. “It’s not pity, Robbie. I’m not saying that just because you’re crying or because it is Christmas. Sure, there’s the saying that he who often stands alone… nevermind, it sounds better in Icelandic.” At the look Robbie gave him, Sportacus gave an apologetic smile. “Anyway, what I meant to say… I care about you throughout the whole year, not just on Christmas.”

Robbie sniffled, which Sportacus politely ignored. “Why?”

“Why I care about you?”

“Yes… why would you?” Robbie wiped his eyes again. His hands were trembling, but Sportacus couldn’t tell if it was because of the cold or the crying. Either way, he didn’t comment. “I mean, I’m _me_. No one cares about me.”

“That’s not true. I care about you, as do the children.” Robbie opened his mouth to protest, but Sportacus shut him up with a raised hand. “They do, Robbie. Your pranks are sometimes the most entertaining thing all week and they really have fun when you play with them. Sure, sometimes you annoy them, but that’s normal. Everyone in town cares about you.”

“Why wasn’t I invited, then?”

Sportacus shrugged. “It doesn’t matter now, does it? What matters is that I’m inviting you to come with me.” He held out his hand to the villain and smiled. “I’d really like it if you joined us inside.”

Robbie hesitated, but then lay his hand in Sportacus’. Even through the fabric of his gloves the elf could feel just how cold they were. He squeezed them gently. “What were you doing outside anyway?” Robbie asked after a few moments of the two of them just standing there.

Sportacus shrugged. “It doesn’t matter, let’s go inside. There might be some cake for you left.”

And as they walked towards the building, Sportacus held Robbie’s hand, thinking it really didn’t matter anymore, because the emptiness inside of him wasn’t there any longer.

 


End file.
